A Downward Spiral From Here On Out
by skytroops
Summary: Skye used to aspire to be a trainer like most, if not all children, but after an incident, he withdrew and stuck to his family occupation of breeder. His best friend (and to be honest, only friend) Ash decides that he wants to show Skye what it's like to be a trainer on the road. [will involve canon/oc]
1. Step 1 - They aren't that great, right?

_Tent, sleeping bag, pillow, clothes, pyjamas, extra pair of socks in case the others got wet, same goes for that shirt with the Mightyena printed on the front of it, underwear, binder…_

Skye slowly continued to go down his somewhat large check list that he had written to check up that he had all of his camping essentials. Everything he was bringing was spread across his bedroom floor and most of it clustered around him. This was the second time he was doing this.

_Two rolls of duct tape, a box of matches, canister for water, three tupperware tubs filled with freshly wrapped food for himself and Chu (oh yeah, he was coming too), a small electrical lantern, pack of wet wipes, the sneaky additions of that little heater and that stove his parents purchased when they went camping back when he was a kid…_

When he crossed out the last of his list, he sat back and sighed to himself. There was so much stuff. Did he really need all of that? It was only going to be two days, not two months. And he was going to have someone with years of traveling experience with him.

He wouldn't be going on his trip in the first place if it wasn't for Ash practically begging him to try being a traveling trainer at least once since Skye had once dreamed of being one while he was a child, but due to a certain accident, he went down the path of a breeder instead.

It had took quite a while for Skye to agree to going on a trip, though Ash was adamant that Skye should come back to Sinnoh with him for the remaining part of his journey there, but Skye somehow managed to get him to compromise that they would go on a weekend long trip together, but they would stay within Route 27 and be back at the ranch by the Monday afternoon.

They had planned this trip for a while now and just last night, Ash had video - called from the Pokémon Centre in Sunyshore City and that he said that he should be at the ranch by the noon the next day.

And now, it was noon the next day, so Skye was expecting him within the hour. That's why Skye was going through all of his stuff again. He didn't want to go on this trip unprepared in **any **aspect.

He had two bags, which was far better than the four he had in his first revision. The largest one was his necessities like his clothing and food, while the other was far smaller, but just as important. It was health supplies for Chu just in case anything bad happened. You never knew if something like a Beedrill decides to show up and poison Chu or Pikachu, or any other of Ash's Pokémon, or even worse, _one of them_.

That…wouldn't be a good thing. It wouldn't be a good thing for any of them to be poisoned! Or paralyzed. Or burned…

Skye stumbled to his feet to go get yet another bottle of Burn Heal when he heard the faint sound of excited yelling coming from outside of his bedroom window. At first, Skye froze in place, one foot hovering over his empty canteen, when he heard more muffled yelling.

Placing his foot down between the space between a set of folded clothes and some socks, he turned around to face the window, but as he was half the room away and with his short stature, he couldn't see who was outside. He was on the first story, so that didn't help either.

Skye's mouth made a faint line when he attempted to listen for the voice again. With the second yell, he was sure he had recognized the voice that called. It wasn't his parents and his brother had left for Unova for research weeks ago, so it wasn't any of his family. It didn't sound like a Pokémon either.

Confused, Skye did his best to not trip over one of his things to get to the bedroom door. It was a little hard, especially with his clumsy feet, but he made it without incident. No face plants today!

Pushing back the blinds to his window, he turned his gaze downward to see a teenage boy nearly bouncing on his feet just at the front of the house's roofed patio, so that he was in sight.

At his feet stood two yellow blobs and one of them; a smaller, but rounder version of the other; had one paw raised towards Skye's bedroom window and now, towards him too.

_Guess ah shouldnae hiv worried aboot 'im bein' late,_ Skye thought as he unlocked the latch to his window and gently swung it open.

That sound, or the moment had caught the newcomer's attention instantly.

"**Hey, Skye!**" The boy greeted, frantically waving his arms up at the breeder. "You ready to go?"

_Awready? He wants tae leave awready? Calm doon, Ash. It's no like we hiv da whole weekend tae spend explorin'…_

Skye opened the window wider and with an amused grin, he leaned against the window sill and stuck his head out to speak to his friend.

"Heh, no yet-! Just aboot though." He chuckled. "Just gimme a couple eh minutes 'n ah'll hiv everythin' packed!"

He glanced over his shoulder to look at all of his belongings that were still strewn about his room floor. That mess was going to take longer than a couple of minutes.

"Okay, great!" Ash cheered.

At that, Skye saw his bedroom door slowly creak open and the slightly disgruntled face of his mother poked in.

"Skye, yir fri-" she stopped herself as she saw her son leaning out the window. Taking a step into Skye's room, she gave the tidy mess Skye had made a look before speaking again.

"…yir checkin' again? Skye, come oon, ah just packed yir bags dis mornin'."

Skye bowed his head awkwardly, mumbling an apology to her as she carefully stepped over the stuff he had unpacked to join him at the window.

When she stood beside her son, she frowned at the giddy teenager at the front door and she raised her voice to him.

"Excuse me, but it's rude tae disturb da peace!" She shouted, making Skye flinch at the volume she used. It looked like Ash did the same from his view point.

"Don't yae realize just how many **babies** yae could be upsettin'? Dis is a_ breedin'_ ranch, ya know!"

One of Ash's arms went behind his head and nervously laughed as he scratched the nape of his neck. "S-sorry, Mrs. Hunter! Won't happen again!" His voice had become more of a loud raspy whisper than anything. Skye saw Pikachu put a paw to his forehead.

Skye's mother's stiff shoulders sagged and she sighed loudly. "Come oon in den. Ah've made lunch."

* * *

Ash had quietened down quite a bit by the time he was given a plate of freshly prepared ham and cheese sandwiches by Skye's mother when he sat down at the Hunter dinner table. He gave Mrs. Hunter a polite 'thank you' as she looked at him.

The Murkrow haired boy gulped at the sight of the sandwiches and his stomach made a loud grumbling sound. He grinned a little. "Aha, guess I was more hungry than I thought…"

"Yae ate oon da way here, right?" Skye asked, raising an eyebrow as he prepared food for a very staved looking Chu, who was clawing desperately at his trouser leg. "Ya know, oon da plane?"

"Of course I did!" Ash snorted as he took off his gloves and took one of the sandwiches he had been offered. "The food on the plane…wasn't great," he grimaced. "we couldn't eat that much of it, it was that bad. Wasn't it, Pikachu?"

Pikachu, who had hopped onto the table to sit beside his trainer, nodded and pulled a disgusted expression and the fur along the back of his neck rose slightly.

_Ash either shared his food wae Pikachu 'r da food fur Pokémon wis just as bad…_ Skye didn't know which one to pick. Heck, it might have been both options for all he knew. He would have probably done the same.

Then again, Chu would have eaten it all without a care of how it tasted. As long as it was food, he'd eat it without thinking.

Skye rolled his green eyes and seeing that the bowls he had been filling were full tot to the brim, he picked them both up and walked to the table. He set one of the bowls in front of Pikachu and when Chu scrambled frantically onto the table, he set the other bowl in front of him.

Pikachu smiled, clasping his paws together and chirped at Skye before taking a piece of food and started to eat. Chu had already buried his muzzle in his food by the time Skye sat himself down on the other side of the polished table.

"Ah'm sure ah could make better food dan wit dey serve oon planes." Skye said with a huff while his mother handed him his own lunch of two sausage – filled rolls. "'N yae know how bad ma cookin' is." He gave a small thanks to his mother and took a hearty bite of his lunch.

Ash laughed. "I think you would-!" He smiled at Pikachu when the electric mouse cooed happily as he eat his lunch. Seeing that his Pokémon was happy with his meal, the trainer turned his attention back to Skye.

"…you do great with Pokémon food though."

Skye just shrugged as he chewed. He knew he did okay, but he never thought he did _great_. The brunet nodded at Ash's hand with the sandwich in it.

_If yae don't start eatin' dat soon, Mum's gonna end up glarin' it yae even mare, mister…_

Ash had began to pout at Skye's casual dismissal to his praise, but he eyed his sandwich and his stomach groaned again. Skye nearly choked on his second bite of his lunch when he bared witness to Ash wolf down the sandwich as if it was nothing. Well, that was unexpected. And sort of scary.

Okay, Skye thought he had seen everything when it came to eating. Ash had proved him wrong there.

_It's just…_gone_._

"Mmh! That tastes really good!" Ash beamed, turning his head to look into the neighbouring room that was the kitchen, directing his praise to the woman inside. "This tastes way better than those stupid riceballs we had on the way here!

Skye's mother was still in the kitchen, waiting on something that was sizzling in a pan on the stove. She looked as if her soul just jumped out of her and her mouth had opened, which she shut as soon as she had been spoken to.

"Umm, thank you, Ash…" Mrs. Hunter said slowly. "It's nothin' really."

_Just as shocked as me den._ Skye commented to himself as he slowly went through his filled roll.

_Wit ir even in those sandwiches? Ash is actin' as if dey're da Combee's knees. _While Skye finished off the rest of his first roll, he narrowed his eyes to get a better look at what his mother had served his friend.

_Just looks like a buttered ham 'n cheese sandwich tae me. Ah cin see tomato in der, but nothin' else…wiz dat breakfast oon da plane _really _dat bad? Never eat airline ricebaws den._


	2. Step 2 - Don't let Dad kill him

"—oh, ah furgot yae wir comin' here dis soon." Skye peered over his shoulder to see his father; Eric; entering the room with a rather stern look etched across his face. He must have took notice of the teenager sitting at his dinner table, stuffing his face with sandwiches as if they were snack food.

"H-hello, Mr. Hunter." Ash greeted in a small voice after looking up from feeding Pikachu a corner of one of his sandwiches.

Skye started to nibble at his second filled roll, his eyebrows slowly knitting together. _Don't yae start demonizin' Ash, Dad. Yir awready scarin' 'im wae a face like dat._

"Hello tae you too," the greying man nodded to him and gazed down at the two electric mice on the table and his serious face softened when the thinner of the two looked up at him. "same goes tae you, Pikachu." Pikachu's nose twitched, but he grinned up at Eric the best he could with a mouthful of food.

_ He's nicer tae Pikachu dan he is tae Ash, Arceus help me._

If Skye wasn't sitting at the dinner table, he would have bashed his head against a wall. So, instead, he continued to eat through his lunch. He loved his father, but seriously? Be nice to him already. It's been _three years_ and Ash had been Skye's first proper friend in a **long **time. Eric knew that better than anyone, so why he so keen on pushing him away?

Besides, what does Eric think he was? His innocent little baby girl falling into the arms of a womanizing young man with a lengthy criminal record?** No!** Far from it! Skye could kick Ash's butt anytime of the week! His perfect winning streak from their wrestling matches proved that.

Before Hr. Hunter seated himself at the table, he gave Skye's short brown hair a rough affectionate ruffle. He grabbed his cupful of scrambled eggs and sat himself in the chair beside his youngest son.

"So, what is the plan?" Eric asked, bringing a forkful of scrambled egg into his mouth. "Fur dis trip, ah mean."

"Umm," the Murkrow haired trainer straightened up in his seat and wiped at the corner of his mouth. "I think Skye wanted to go to this mountain close by. He says it's a good place to start because it's so close."

He turned to the breeder. "What was the place called? I…sorta forgot."

"Shimmering Sunset Peak," Skye mumbled.

"Dat's where yir goin'?" Skye's mother asked after swallowing a mouthful of her egg salad. "Dat only takes aboot two hours tae get up der."

Skye shrugged. "Aye, but we're gonna take oor time, so it'll take longer. We're no goin' straight der either."

"Be sure tae keep an eye oot fur ledges when yae get up der," his father advised in a serious voice. "we aw know how clumsy wae where yae put yir feet, Skye."

"Ah'm no **dat** clumsy…" Skye grumbled, wrinkling his nose at his dad when he turned his head to look up at him. "Ash, Pikachu ' Chu'll keep an eye oot fur any stray _sneaky_ ledges."

At the corner of his vision, he was sure he saw Ash trying his best not to grin at his snark towards his father. Maybe it was ovbious that Skye wasn't being mean spirited or insulting. He did usually speak to his father as if he was speaking to a fellow teenager rather than his parental figure.

It was just how they worked.

Eric deadpanned at him. "Ah'm only makin' sure yae don't get hurt oot der. Dis trip is yir first time travelin' waeoot wan eh us comin' wae yae." The father shot Ash a look and all evidence of the trainer's amusement quickly faded.

"Ah'm sure yae'll keep oor Skye safe oot der. Right, Ketchum?"

Ash looked as if he had paled at being called by his last name in such a stern tone of voice. His hands rose up, waving them in front of himself and he nervously smiled.

"I will, Mr. Hunter! Don't you worry! We'll make sure nothing bad happens to Skye!" He looked at his Pokémon, who was quietly washing his paws of food crumbs. "Right, buddy?"

"Pi - pikachu!" The electric type thrust a paw into the air in agreement.

Eric frowned at them in turn, but after a moment, he slowly nodded. "Good."

* * *

"Hiv yae got yir Pokégear fully charged?"

"Aye, Mum."

"Extra underwear?"

"Well, yeah?"

"…pa-"

"Ah'm no due _dat_ fur another two weeks-!"

"Ah packed some just in case. Yae never know. It's no like he's gonna hiv any tae give yae if yae dae end up-"

"**Mum. **Please stop."

Skye childishly puffed his reddening cheeks at his mother's embarrassing list of…_womanly_ essentials. He knew this sort of stuff was coming, but it didn't make it any less embarrassing. The breeder thanked his stars that Ash wasn't around to hear that. He would probably have no idea what they were going on about, but _still_.

"Just makin' sure yae hiv everythin' yae need, sweetheart." His mother replied sweetly, though Skye could see her smile was a little too big for his tastes.

_ Makin' fun eh yir ean son? Thanks, mother. Feelin' da love._

Skye stood awkwardly with both of his bags at his feet, prepared and ready for the small journey ahead. He and his mother were standing outside of the house, on the roofed patio, waiting for the second half to Skye's travel party to come out from his trip to the wash room.

Skye's father had already went back to his work, but he did not go without saying his goodbyes to his son and give more terror to Ash for good measure. Chu had been dragged to the other side of the patio by his own mother to be preached just like Winnie was doing with Skye, or at least, that's what Skye guessed from how Chu's facial expressions that mirrored Skye's own to a T.

Winnie eyed his belongings suspiciously and she frowned slightly. "Ir yae sure aboot bringin' dat much? Yir only gonna be away fur a couple eh days 'n yir gonna be carryin' aw dat weight aroon' fur aw dat time yir oot."

"It's better bein' over prepared dan under." Skye stated, huffing. "Ah'm bringin' stuff dat'll be useful fur dis trip."

"Like a portable heater?"

_ Uh oh._

Skye gritted his teeth. "Yae saw dat?"

"Yae left it in da middle eh yir bedroom flear 'n ah'm yir mother. Ah knew yae wir gonna dae somethin' like dis." Winnie answered as Skye bowed his head in defeat. "Yae dae remember yae cin make a fire, right?"

The young breeder scoffed. "Of course ah dae-! But, ah heard oon da weather report last night dat der's a chance it's gonna rain, so ah thought a fire wid be a bad idea since da wood wid be soaked 'n it'd take forever tae get a good enough fire goin', so da heater is da next best 'hing-!"

Winnie blinked as he went on and on about making sense of why he was bringing the heater. While he continued to justify his case, the front door to the house opened and Ash stepped out with Pikachu at his heels. He quickly took notice of the mother and son and adjusted his hat as he walked up to them.

Skye saw Pikachu leave his trainer's side when he was flagged over by a wave of Pika's heart shaped tail.

_ Pika, he isnae yir son. Nae need tae preach him too._

"Looks like yir ready tae go den," Winnie said with a sigh, placing her hands on her hips when the smaller teenager stood beside her son with a huge smile on his face.

When Skye made eye contact with him, he ended up smiling right back. "Be sure tae call us when yae get tae da peak, awright? We gotta make sure da both eh yae made it up der safe 'n sound. An-"

"Make sure tae call back hame when we set up camp every night." Skye interrupted, raising a brow in a smug fashion.

"Yes, yae dae just dat." His mother said flatly. "Least ah know yae won't furget…" Skye smirked at that and he bent down to put on his bags, grunting as the weight of them pressed down on his back and shoulders while he stood back up.

_ Ugh, dey 'r real heavy. Ah'll be fine. Ah've carried heavier 'hings…_

Winnie opened her arms to her son and Skye swiftly obliged by wrapping his arms around his mother in farewell. He nearly let out a squeak when his mother tightened her grasp around him.

This hug felt…a little too strong for a normal goodbye hug. Did she not want him to go? He knew she would be worried about him leaving, even for such a short time, but…

"Enjoy yirselves oot der," she chimed, pulling herself away. "just make it back in wan piece." She looked at Ash, who had been quietly standing next to them. "Dat goes fur da both eh yae. Ah've heard just how reckless yae cin be."

Ash stood rigid when the attention was placed on him. "O-okay, Mrs, Hunter!"

_ Still shaken by Dad glarin' at 'im da entire way through lunch, ah guess. _Skye would make sure to give his father an earful when they come back. Putting the fear of Arceus into Ash **wasn't** nice. _He's daein' you guys a favour wae takin' me oot like dis._

"Pika! Skye's leavin'-!" Winnie called towards the trio of yellow mice at the other side of the patio. "Come ova here 'n say bye!"

The only female of the three whirled around and bounded over to them to leap straight into her trainer's arms with a loud 'pi - chu - pi!'.

Skye chuckled, but squeezed the Pokémon to his chest. "Don't yae worry, Pika. We'll be back hame befur yae know it."

"Cha~!" Pika cooed, stretching her neck up to affectionately nuzzle into the breeder's chin, the sacs in her cheeks bringing forth a harmless static to tickle Skye's skin.

_ She's actin' like we won't be back fur weeks. _He thought with a warm smile.

The younger Pocket Monsters had followed her, but were far slower in their pace. Pikachu climbed onto Ash's shoulder and took his place there with a pleasant coo of his own. Chu stood himself at Skye's feet, allowing his mother say her farewell uninterrupted.

Giving Pika a scratch behind the ear, Skye gently gave her to his mother, who had gestured to him when he was ready to place the Pikachu on the patio floor.

"Ready to go?" Asked a fidgeting Ash with a hopeful look. The brunet slowly nodded and repeated the question back.

Ash's big brown eyes shone brightly. "Yeah! More than ready!" He bounced on his heels like he had when he first showed up to the ranch. "Let's go!"

In a far more calmer fashion, Skye confirmed that he was ready to go again with a nod and tagged along after the younger teenager as he jumped off the patio with a happy cheer.

_ Dis weekend is gonna be interestin', dat's fur sure…dis is it. Time tae be a trainer like ah always wanted. W-when ah wiz eight…_

Doing his best to hide his growing anxiety, Skye took in a long slow deep breath to calm himself. He didn't want his mother to worry about him more than she had. He turned back and waved towards his mother and Pika as he and Ash walked (or rather walked behind Ash as he ran on ahead) to the front of the ranch to leave.

"Hey, Skye?" The breeder turned to look at his new travel buddy as he slowed down his trot into a walk, falling in beside him with a rather unnerved expression.

Confused by the sudden change in mood, Skye asked; "Wit is it?" Ash's face fell at the question.

"**…I think your Dad doesn't like me.**"

_Ya 'hink?!_


End file.
